Are you looking to give more of a donation to charity without forking out extra?

There are ways of giving extra donations to charity without leaving you out of pocket. In current times of financial hardship, charities are relying more and more on the generosity of its donors to ensure that they can continue with their work.

We've found 3 ways that you can give me more, for less...

Gift Aid

Gift aid is a way of charities claiming back the tax from HMRC that they would have paid on donations and charity income, ensuring that more money can go to the cause. Essentially, for every £1 you donate to charity, that charity can claim an extra 25p without it costing you a single penny more.

"Would you like to gift aid your donation" is a question that is often asked when sending a direct donation to a charity. Originally declarations to gift aid had to be made in writing, but an agreement can now be made verbally. This has meant that donations given to charities in the streets or on the phone can be signed up for gift aid immediately, rather than waiting for paperwork to be returned.

To be able to give gift aid to a charity, you must be a UK tax payer. For a basic rate tax payer (20%), this usually means that the charity can claim 25% back on the value of the donation. If you are a higher rate tax payer (usually 40%), the charity will be able to claim slightly more on your donation.

Payroll Giving

Some employers run a payroll giving scheme. This means you can donate to any UK charity straight from your wages each month before tax has been deducted from your income. Payroll giving is taken straight from your pre tax pay, which means that the charity wont need to physically claim the money back from HMRC. The donation deduction will then be shown on your payslip.

You can be giving regular donations each month, and because it's tax free you're actually giving more than you intended to. For example, if you are a basic rate tax payer, each £1.00 you give will only cost you 80p and if you are a higher rate tax payer it will cost you 60p.

If this is something that you are interested in, you will need to speak to your employer to see if it's currently offered. If not, it might be worth speaking to other colleagues to see if this is something anyone else would want to take part in.

Online Giving

Even if you aren't a UK tax payer, there are still ways to donate to charity without it costing you extra. By using iStreet to shop online you can create a free donation to any charity that you wish to. Simply select a retailer, select a charity and start shopping. The charity will be sent a percentage of your total spend!

If you are clever and look for different alternatives to just a straight forward cheque in the post to the charity you are supporting (although the charity will be incredibly grateful) there are ways that you can create a bigger donation whilst outsmarting the sometimes greedy tax man!